Patriots' Jermaine Cunningham suspended

New England's Jermaine Cunningham won't be making the trip to South Florida with his team this weekend.

The Patriots will face the Miami Dolphins on Sunday in a game in which they can puncture the playoff ambitions of their AFC East rivals and remain in contention for one of the top two seeds in the conference playoffs with a win.

It's a trip to Miami they'll make without defensive end Jermaine Cunningham and running back Brandon Bolden.

Cunningham was suspended by the NFL yesterday for four games without pay for violating league policy on the use of performance-enhancing substances. He's eligible to rejoin New England on Dec. 24, the day after it plays the Jaguars in Jacksonville.

He'll also miss games against the Houston Texans and San Francisco 49ers, who are a combined 18-3-1 and have the first and third best records in football.

Cunningham's substance of choice wasn't included in the statement released by the league, which came out a few hours after coach Bill Belichick conducted a conference call with the media.

According to multiple reports, Cunningham already has gone through the appeals process, meaning his bid for leniency was denied.

Cunningham's suspension comes 18 days after the league whacked Bolden with a four-game suspension for the same infraction. The rookie, who made the Patriots after going undrafted out of Mississippi, is eligible to rejoin the team Monday.

Though Bolden has played well this season, averaging 5.4 yards a carry and scoring two touchdowns, his absence has gone largely unnoticed. Stevan Ridley, Danny Woodhead and Shane Vereen, who has seen an uptick in activity and productivity as of late, have been a complementary and efficient trio of running backs.

Cunningham's unwanted hiatus is more likely to have a negative impact on a defense that has done some positive things as of late.

The third-year pro lined up inside and outside, mainly in pass-rushing situations as part of the sub defense, during the first nine games of the season. It was a role he was effective in for the first time since the Patriots drafted him out of Florida in the second round (53rd overall) in 2010.

After playing 48.3 percent of the defensive snaps in the first nine games, according to espnboston.com, Cunningham has seen that total jump to 89 percent in the last two games. He has been a capable replacement for rookie Chandler Jones, who has been sidelined since suffering an ankle injury early in a 59-24 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Nov. 18.

Jones didn't practice last week and sat out the Thanksgiving thrashing of the New York Jets. Cunningham started in his place.

Cunningham, who had one sack in 24 games in his first two seasons, has 2.5 in 11 games this year. He also has 23 tackles, six quarterback hits and two fumble recoveries.

“He's certainly making the most of a lot of opportunities, and whatever opportunities he's had, he's earned; they haven't been given to him,” Belichick said last week while praising Cunningham. “He's earned them through his work ethic, performance and production. The harder you work, the more you produce, the more opportunities you get. That's pro sports. That's pro football.”

Assuming the Patriots stick with a four-man front and Jones remains out, rapidly improving Brandon Deaderick could step in for Cunningham on early downs with Trevor Scott getting the call when a pass rusher is needed. The Patriots also could move Vince Wilfork outside and pair Deaderick and Kyle Love at tackle.

This brings to three the number of Patriots suspended by the league for the use of performance-enhancing substances this season. Cornerback Aqib Talib served the fourth and final game of his suspension after being acquired from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Nov. 1.

Talib said in a statement that he had been nabbed using Adderall, which is used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. It's a drug that isn't banned by the league as long as it has been prescribed by a doctor.